Theogony
by An Author's Pen
Summary: "First there was chaos, and from that chaos we say a great egg was formed." A modern translation of pokemon mythology's oldest record.
1. The First Days

**A Note Concerning Translation** : _The Theogony was originally written in Unown script, the most ancient written language. The Unown language is rough and minimalistic, with many verbs and prepositions assumed. Taking past translations as a guide, we have done our best to fill in the gaps. Additionally, Unown script uses the non-gendered pronoun xe to refer to the legendary pokemon. Our language does not contain an equivalent usage. Many translations use the pronoun 'it', but this does not accurately reflect the animus of the legendary pokemon. We have instead assigned gender to the legendary pokemon – but the careful reader will understand that this gender designation is arbitrary._

 _This translation's aim is to bring the tales of the legends to life while keeping close to the intent and tone of the text. For a primarily literalistic translation see the stellar work of Sinnoh Champion Cynthia Keles._

 **A Note Concerning Authorship** : _Each section of the Theogony is ended with the Unown sign Z. The author of the Theogony is thus called Unown Z; little more can be said of them. Unown Z_ _was most likely more than one person. The mark could be the sign of a group of scribes, a village, or simply an end-marker that has since fallen out of usage._

 _Many regions have tried to claim the Theogony's author(s) as their own. Sinnosians argue that the primacy of Arceus and the Sinnosian deities proves that Unown Z came from Sinnoh. Kantonians, on the other hand, point out the central role of Mew in the text. It is clear, however, that Unown Z did not have access to the tales of Unova and Kalos, since their foundational deities do not make an appearance in the Theogony._

 _The Theogony is clearly a compilation of tales told by the peoples of the Kanto, Johto, Hoenn and Sinnoh regions, but how these tales were compiled is one of classic scholarship's greatest mysteries, and is likely to remain so._

* * *

 **The First Days**

First there was chaos, and from that chaos we say a great egg was formed, a planet (1). And from the breaking of that egg came Arceus, the first. So we name her Original One, because she was the first to raise her head and conceive.

In the wildness of the early days she brought order. Matter she made hers, and to govern its opposing force she looked over her shoulder and Giratina _was_. Lord of the the Distortion World, we name her (2), Queen of the Shadow realm.

For the ordering of time and space, Arceus brought forth two guardians: Dialga, and his domain is time; Palkia, and his domain is space.

This was before the world had shape.

Then Arceus was weary and sleep came upon her. In her sleep she saw an egg, like the one she herself had sprung from. It began to crack, but no figure emerged. Instead, there came void, a blackness to engulf her whole creation. Arceus awoke in terror, and so Darkrai, Lord of Nightmares, was born.

Arceus fell to sleep again. Again she saw the great egg, but this time a figure emerged, like Arceus and yet unlike, similar yet distinct. Arceus saw an equal, as beautiful and glorious as herself. She reached out a hoof, full of joy, but as she touched the figure her dream shattered and Arceus awoke. Thus Cresselia was born, the Queen of Pleasant Dreams. But Arceus' heart was full of the pain these imaginings had brought her. She banished Darkrai to a darkness like that of her nightmare, and Cresselia, whose empty hopes had hurt her most, to existence only when the moon was full.

So Arceus made night and day, and the sun and moon to light them.

At this, Giratina was filled with wonder. _When the darkness comes I know it for Night_ , she said. _When the light comes I know it is day_. So Giratina spoke, and from this knowing Uxie became. But we also say (3) that when Arceus ordered the world she left one egg. And from this egg hatched the trio: Mesprit, Uxie, and Azelf. Their birth brought spirit into the world. For the first time, pokemon knew themselves from others. They divided the world into the darkness behind their eyes and the darkness beyond them (4).

You have felt Mesprit. She lives inside the stomach.

You have known Uxie. She lives inside the heart (5).

You have willed Azelf. She lives inside the head.

When Arceus brought forth Giratina, Dialga, and Palkia, another too was born. This was Heatran, hot and steely, and in his fierce fires the earth was born.

 **Z**

 _(1) The word we have translated as both egg and planet is in fact the same phrase. The most literal translation is "large life stone". The phrase is used in many contexts across Unknown script, some of which suggest an egg, others which suggest a planet. The repetition of the word may be used to suggest that Arceus' birth was both egg and planet. For the past century the word was translated exclusively in the sense of egg, giving rise to such renderings as "from chaos an egg, the greatest egg." But the discoveries of modern science indicate that the Theogony's simple origin story may be a rough version of the truth – the formation and destruction of a planet as the catalyst for the earth's development. In light of this we have chosen to translate as both egg and planet._

 _(2) The 'royal we' is typical of Unown writing. The ancient writers seem to have believed that since the letters they used were also pokemon, they wrote in agreement with the unown pokemon themselves. So a single author will likely speak in the plural._

 _(3) Such conflicting mythologies are typical of the Theogony._

 _(4) This difficult sentence seems to deal with consciousness. Though Arceus made the Creation Trio, it was the birth of the Lake Trio which brought them a sense of self._

 _(5) The ancients believed the heart to be the repository of intelligence._


	2. The Forming of the Continents

**The Forming of the Continents**

From the making of the earth the raging elements were born. One was Groudon, and where he stepped lava flowed and hardened. One was Kyogre, and where he swam the currents flowed and overwhelmed. For an age the two fought, locked into unending battle, for their hearts were set in opposition. Here the lands spreads out; here the sea rises high.

They battled into exhaustion. At last Groudon stepped into the heart of a great volcano and Kyogre swam into the deepest sea.

Then Arceus looked out upon the earth. She saw chaos in the patterning of the land and the sea, and she did not think it good. So she fashioned a great golem, Regigigas, and its (1) undertaking was to move the land into place (2). When its task was ended, it was weary. And because it is in all things to create (3), Regigigas made three like golems in its own image, and these were their names: Regirock, Registeel, Regice.

 **Z**

 _(1) Regigigas alone of the legendary pokemon is referred to by the inanimate pronoun it. Cave drawings depict Regigigas as a machine-like creation, single-mindedly carrying out its appointed task._

 _(2) This is a clear example of the Theogony's mythological synthesis. Regigigas is a entity common to Hoenn's mythology, but the Theogony uses the Sinnosian deity Arceus to account for his creation. The figure of Arceus is used multiple times to unify the sometimes disparate mythologies of these different regions._

 _(3) Even the automaton Regigigas has the urge to create. The desire to create and sustain life is a common theme across the Theogony._


	3. The First Catastrophe

**The First Catastrophe**

Soon the earth was peopled with all manner of pokemon, for the grass was good, and berries grew freely from all the trees. This was a time of plenty, and cares were few. Long had Arceus been weary from the task of her creation. Now she brought forth two more beings: Lugia and Ho-Oh, who would watch over the world in her stead.

So Arceus sank into long sleep.

In her place Lugia and Ho-Oh ruled over the world. But soon they were dismayed. The pokemon grew spoiled by the plenty that surrounded them. They began to make war on each other for no reason but sport. Splitting themselves into endless factions, they fought an unending war. Bodies piled high like spoiled fruit.

There was one pokemon who wouldn't fight. She called herself Mew and would do no battle, though every day of her life was lived in its midst. Intrigued, Lugia flew down to her. "Little pokemon," he said, "you live your life in battle, but you do not fight. Why?"

The small pokemon was terrified by Lugia's power and might, but she answered bravely. "I know that all pokemon are my sisters and brothers," she said. "To fight them would be wrong."

Lugia was impressed by her answer, but when he looked out on the world his heart was grave. Flying back to the great tower he called home, he conferred with Ho-Oh. They told Mew to go to the highest place in the land, and bring only her family.

Then together Lugia and Ho-Oh flooded the world. Whipping their wings, they raised the water until all the land-dwelling pokemon were lost. Then they scorched away the sea, so that the pokemon who lived in its depths burned in the heated air.

Thus it was that only Mew and her family survived. Mew wept bitterly to see the destruction the great birds had caused. She vowed that if she had their power, she would grant life, not death.

Hearing her in her long sleep, Arceus listened, and gave a spark of her great power to Mew. Thus Mew gained the power of creation. Where her tears fell, new pokemon arose. She and her kin wandered long and far, shaping new life with each day. Mew brought forth three birds of great power – Moltres, who is fire; Zapdos, who is thunder; Articuno, who is ice. These and many more she brought into being.

It is for this reason we honor Mew, and call her Mother of Pokemon (1).

 **Z**

 _(1) Geneticists have found Mew's DNA in the DNA of all pokemon. Looking at the Theogony, it seems that the ancients had some knowledge of the genetic ancestry owed to Mew._


	4. The Rise of Humankind

**The Rise of Humankind**

Arcanine was a proud pokemon, the messenger of the gods. Under the wings of Ho-Oh and Lugia, he blazed across the lands. In his wanderings he came across a tribe of pokemon that seemed to him more miserable than the rest. They did not have thick fur, like Arcanine, nor great speed, nor fierce claws nor sharp teeth. When the lands were warm and full of plenty they had flourished, but soon cold took the land, and trees went bare; the pokemon perished like leaves.

Then pity was in Arcanine. He vowed to save them, yet what could he do? He could not give them his speed nor his pelt. He was one, and they were many. He lit them a fire to warm themselves, though soon this fire would go out. Then Arcanine remembered the flame that does not go out, the sacred fire of Ho-Oh, Lord of the everlasting flame.

Arcanine sped his way to the home of Ho-Oh, calling loudly as he entered, "My lord Ho-Oh, I have a message for you! I come from far across the sea. Moltres of the brightly burning wings gave me this to say: he does not believe your flame is the strongest and most enduring in the world. Only his own flame could merit such an honor. I am grieved to bring you these words, my lord, but such is my duty as a messenger."

Rage took Ho-Oh: "How dare that upstart, mountain god, claim that his fire burns hotter than mine! Look!" And with those words, he opened his mouth and expelled his sacred flame.

This was the moment that Arcanine awaited. He leaped up and caught some of the flame in his mouth. Though Arcanine was a creature of fire, Ho-Oh's flame burned hot beyond his imagining. Yet he concealed his distress, and said, "My lord, truly no flame burns hotter than yours and no flame is more enduring. I will tell this to Moltres right away."

With these words Arcanine fled. He ran as fast as his legs could take him – legendary beast, messenger of the gods! – until he had reached the tribe of pokemon. Awe was in them as he ran up, for his whole body was alight, burning with the heat of Ho-Oh's fire. With his last strength he gasped up the ball of fire. It fell to the ground, and behold, it was fire of Ho-Oh. It took root in the soil, but did not spread. The pokemon gathered around it, and the light of that fire was in their faces, and the heat of the fire was inside them.

Arcanine fell to the ground, for he was spent, his body charred from the heat of Ho-Oh's fire. But he was glad, for he had done what he had set out to do. With the gift of Ho-Oh's fire, these pokemon would survive.

Then the presence of the lord was strong about him. "Original One!" Arcanine cried out, though he did not have the strength to rise and give honor to Arceus.

"Arcanine," Arceus roared. "What have you done? Contrary to all of our laws, you have stolen from your masters, given the sacred fire of Ho-Oh to those not meant to posses that mighty flame."

"I know what I have done," Arcanine said. "And haven't I paid the price? But I cannot regret it, for now there is life where once there would have been death."

"Look further," Arceus said. "The sacred fire of Ho-Oh is not merely a hot flame. Ho-Oh's fire contains the sparks of reason and thought, the qualities that set us above all other pokemon. Now these humans have the legendary gift. Under the sacred fire's light they will grow in wisdom and ambition, until they think to bend even us to their will."

Then understanding struck Arcanine – for he too had touched the flame of Ho-Oh. "You cannot take it from them, unless you mean to kill them all."

A great light burned in Arceus' eyes. "Perhaps that is what I must do."

"The crime is not theirs, but mine. Are you not the one from whom we have order? And is not justice her kin?"

Then mercy was with Arceus, and justice, her kin. "This gift has been given now, and only death will take it. Death I do not choose to grant this day. But what is to be done with you, Arcanine? You can remain one of us no longer, yet it is unfitting for one such as you to die. This is my judgement, Arcanine. You will walk the world at the side of the humans you gave up so so much to serve, weak and reduced, an ember of your former self. And when you birth young, their weakness will be even greater. Go, my former servant. Yours is a new master now."

And it was just as Arceus said. When Arcanine awoke there was weakness in him. He could not circle the world in a few blinks of the eye, nor produce flame so hot that it could burn through mountains. He was an ordinary pokemon now (1).

Arceus had removed his charred fur, but she left some black on Arcanine's beautiful orange pelt – a reminder of the deed that had brought him this life. So we say how we were given the sacred fire of Ho-Oh, and so rose above all other pokemon. And we say also of brave Arcanine, who risked all for us, and to this day will always be found at our side.

 **Z**

 _(1) Arcanine are still classified as legendary pokemon, a relic of times when writings such as the Theogony formed the basis of pokemon research._


	5. The Overreaching

**The Overreaching**

With the gift of Ho-Oh's fire, humankind soon surpassed all other pokemon. Some of Arceus' creating power had passed to them, and they used it greedily (1).

It came to pass that humankind looked up and saw the great towers of Ho-Oh and Lugia. Then pride was in their hearts and they said, _we shall build us a tower as tall as the towers of the great legendary birds_. So they set to work, and set all the pokemon to work for them. To build this tower, they cut down trees from the great forests. At this, the forests cried out, and such was their pain that a pokemon was birthed. We call her Celebi for she is the guardian of all forests, those that are, and those that were, and those that still may be (2).

The tower rose up and up. Ho-Oh saw the tower and was taken with rage. "You presume too much," the great bird said, "for we are gods, and you are beneath us."

Then Ho-Oh struck the peoples of the land with a curse, that they would not understand the tongue of the pokemon as they were once able to do. This was the curse of humankind for their presumption.

Unable to communicate, the work was halted and the tower lapsed into decay. And in his heart Ho-Oh vowed that one day a human of pure heart would come. This human he would raise up, and this human would understand the tongue of pokemon (3).

So we were punished for our overreaching.

It also came to pass that Ho-Oh's Tower was struck by lightning. It took fire while three pokemon were trapped inside and they perished in the disaster. Then mercy was in Ho-Oh's heart. The first he made as the lightning; the second he made as the fire; the third he made as the gentle water that finally doused the tower. So the pokemon were reborn as Raikou, Entei and Suicune. Those who saw them rise were stricken with fear. And the pokemon, knowing their new power, fled as if the very wind were in them.

Praised be Suicune, who cleanses the water, and sends us gentle and needful rain (4)!

 **Z**

 _(1) Most scholars agree that this passage was added on to an older Johtoan myth._

 _(2) Perhaps an oblique reference to the popular myth that Celebi can travel in time._

 _(3) In an alternate version of this myth, Lugia challenges the Legendary Birds of Kanto to a battle and in the ensuing match his tower is struck by lightning. Following this incident, Lugia and Ho-Oh both depart._

 _(4) Many tribes in Johto worship Suicune as a fertility god._


	6. The Second Catastrophe

**The Second Catastrophe** (1)

Now the oceans grow wild, for Kyogre stirs. Now the mountains belch fire, for Groudon stirs. Now the titans clash in endless battle. The seas will dry and the mountains will crumble before they make peace.

Devastation takes the earth. There is drought and flood; there is hunger and thirst. The land and the sea strike us like foes in battle.

We pray, and this is our answer. From the sky she comes: the great one. As long as a river and colored like an aurora sky. At her cry the pokemon halt. The anger in their hearts, she calms it.

Sing out great songs to her:

Rayquaza, like a river streaming in the sky (2)!

From the sky she comes, calming anger

Her name is Rayquaza, and she is high in our hearts (3)!

 **Z**

 _(1) This section of the Theogony is written in a more ancient Unown dialect than the rest, suggesting this account is older than the others. Writings of the Draconid people, an ancient Hoenese tribe, contains a very similar account._

 _(2) The repeated imagery of a river corresponds to crude ancient drawings that depict Raquaza as having a snakelike form that could be taken for a flowing river._

 _(3) Another early prayer. Of Rayquaza cults, the most well-known and enduring are the Draconid people._


	7. The Hymn of Jirachi

**The Hymn of Jirachi**

O Maker of Every Wish, long have you slept!

The sun reaches its zenith for the thousandth time

You wake and the light is so good!

/

Shall I tell you of the wonders you have missed?

When first you closed your eye (1) there was chaos

Now see how the cosmos has order! (2)

/

What shall I ask of you, Miracle-worker?

The moon makes every rock into a diamond

I have no further wish for you to grant! (3)

 **Z**

 _(1) Though this seems to be an error of number, we follow tradition in keeping the singular eye. Since no one in recent history has seen Jirachi, it is not unreasonable to think that she has only one eye._

 _(2) Order is a unifying message in the Theogony. The transformation of the cosmos from chaos to order ties together the various creation myths._

 _(3) Though much of the Theogony is concerned with disaster, the Theogony's end takes on a joyful and celebratory note. This contrasts greatly with the fatalistic bent of "The Tablet", the Kalosian chant to the death god Yveltal and the bellicose message of "Warring", the Unovan epic poem that details the battle of the two brothers that formed Unova. In the Theogony, order and life triumph._


End file.
